Churches share pastor

Pamela Osborne has been appointed pastor at Andover Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Stanhope.

She began serving both congregations Sept. 9.

She presides at Sunday services at 9 a.m. in Stanhope and at 10:30 a.m. in Andover.

Many Presbyterian churches find themselves in a “pastor sharing” situation because of a shortage of qualified ministers.

Last year, the Rev. Dr. Christopher Doyle began serving as a shared pastor at West Milford and Oak Ridge Presbyterian Churches. He previously was a shared pastor at Oak Ridge and Berkshire Valley Presbyterian Churches.

Called at young age

Osborne grew up in Presbyterian churches in a family of active church members. She was ordained as a Deacon in high school and an Elder as a young adult.

She served on Session, taught Sunday School, sang in the choir and served on mission projects.

Although she felt a calling to enter the ministry, she first studied sociology at Ithaca College and earned her master of social work degree from Rutgers University.

For many years, she worked as a social worker, supporting people and their families in nursing homes and rehabilitation centers as a counselor and advocate.

Years later, she decided to enter the ministry and studied at Union Theological Seminary in New York City.

There, she began to pray about where God might be leading her to serve.

“I learned that I loved providing pastoral care in the hospital ... but also at coffee hour, that I enjoyed planning and leading worship, that I liked churches of a size where I could know a bit about each of the parishioners, that I valued good music as part of worship, and that I was called to serve a church that strove to meet the needs in its community and world,” she said.

“These are among the qualities that drew me to your congregations and that excite me about the possibilities for ministry in Stanhope and Andover!”